Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1887-11-23
MARION'S MADNESS;
The Fate OF a Beautiful Woman.

1 met Marion Williams while on a
sketching tour in Wales. Her horse
ran away with her one day and 1 was
fortunate enough to be on hand TO stop
him, thereby earning the thanks Of the
fair reader.
When L became acquainted with her
father he insisted on my taking up my
abode at Englyn Grange as long as 1
was in that neighborhood. What !
had foreseen took place. L fell in love
with Marion. Mr.. Williams did not
object to me as a suitor, and the day
for our marriage was fixed.
One characteristic of my intended
wife l want TO mention. She was a
girl of most daring temperament, and
never so happy as when engaged in
some perilous expedition. She told
me one day Welsh legend of certain
haunted hilltop where still could be
seen a sort of rock-hewn throne where
! the Lady of Cader Idris had sat one
night TO view the spectres who kept
watch over the hills treasure. know
| l laughed at this story, and Marion be-
came very angry.
II will show you that a woman dare
do more than you suppose. | will go
| through this ordeal that you believe
/ impossible. We shall see who is right,
you or l." and she left the room at
! once.
My prediction that there would be a
storm that night was fulfilled to the
| letter.
/ fell asleep, and strange dream i
I had. 1 dreamt of the high peak of
| Idris, with its storm-lashed terrace of
messy stone, the cairn OF loose pebbles
/ and the rocky chair deep cut in the
very brow of the horrid cliff, with
yawning precipice below. And the
! chair was not empty. No, 1t had a
! tenant, and that tenant bore female
/ shape. l ceuld See the white robe
! fluttering through the blackness of
night, and the loosened hair, and the
hand that was pressed to the eyes, as
/ II to shut out some ghastly sight of
things unspeakable, while its fellow
grasped the rocky rim of the throne.
The tempest bro>e in its might upon
the peak of IdTls-hail, rain, wind,
swept the mountain as with besom,
and the pale form in the fantastic
chair endured them all. Strange. un-
earthly shriekS were blended with the
howl of the wind; wild and dismal pa
geants trooped by amid the driving
l4L5LS anu SllGCLo vi Ollf4Lh ldll, dllu
by one last glare of the lightning, L saw
the figure remove the hand that hid
the face. The face of a young girl-of
MarIonl
l. L awoke in the golden. brilliant
morning; the sky was blue, the birds
were singing gayly, and the verdure of
the country seemed freSher and fairer
than before the storm.
L went down to the breakfast-roOm.
The squire was there with his two
eldest daughters and his eldest son,
while young Herbert came in with his
tishing-rod moment later; but no
Marion. The Old butcher brought in
the urn, after we lad exchanged a few
remarks, and then, for the first time,
MarIon'5 absence was commented upon.
''She is not usually the lazy one, :"
said her father. "Owen, send up Miss
MaTion's maid to let her know we are
waiting breakfast. "
The man went. We chatted on.
But Owen came back with a blank
look to say the maid had found the
door locked and thai she had knocked
repeatedly without getting an answer.
This astonished us all.
''She must be III, cried Charlotte, the
eldest sister, hastily leaving the room
She came back to say that she had
called aloud at the door, but that Ma
rion would not reply word.
We all went up IN a body. Two or
three of the servants were on the land
ngplace.
II am afraid, sir said the lady's
mail, half crying, something's amiss.
J We can't hear a sound. It's all as
still as DEATH
Something painful shot across all oUr
minds as we heard this speech.
We neared the door. The squire
tapped.
Marion! Marion, love! answer me
darling; are you illI'
No reply.
Squire Williams set his strong shoul
der against the door, and by a violent
effort dashed it in.
We entered. The room was tenant
, less.
Miss Marion must have gone out
last night" stammered one of th'
women, ''for the bed has not beer
touched.''
= ''She must be mad, my poor, poo
child" groaned the squire; ''or she is
playing US a trick? No, she neve
could have the heart to tride with u
! in this way"
II know where she is,' l crieC
, aloud. 81 know it but too well. Sh,
! Is on the mountain, on Cader Idris
dead or mad by this, and L am tn,
!, accursed cause"
My vehemence bore down all Opposi
-, tion. In less than five minutes W,
: were hurring to the foot Ot the noun
tain. But | outstrIpped them all
a My heart was on fire and my feet wer,
! gifted with unusual speed. Up, up
among the slippery shade and lOos
stones; up by brush and crag. by rocl
n and wateTcourse, and by tracks oni.
!, trOGden by the goat, and l stand pant
!, ing on the terrace. a few feet of peal
o above, a yawning precipice below.
NV dream was too terribly realized
-, There IN the rock-hewn chair, in he
! muslin dress and mantle of gay PLAID
both of them drenched and STAINED
h with rain and earth, lay Marion, col,
=, and dead. Her long hair half hid he
: pale face, and her little hands were
= tightly clasped together. l straine,
her TO my breast; l called wildly on ne
. name; l parted the dank hair that hi
= her face, and on it l saw imprinted tn
% same agony Of fear, the same dar
horror as in my fatal dream.
= THE PLAQUES OF INDIA